Wise and Foolish Builders

Cardigan had a brickworks from 1860 until 1925. The second half of the 19th century was its heyday during its modern history. It was then a major port and ship building centre. On the back of that, it was a commercial and trading centre. Just from walking around town, it is clear how many of the buildings were constructed during that period. This is one of them, the Mount Zion Baptist Chapel, built using those same local bricks. Another was a 'Tea Exchange' - a building that is now used as a clothes shop and/or cafe. I don't really understand exactly what hapoens in a tea exchange - would tea have been imported directly into Cardigan? Further research needed

The availability of the port meant the brickworks could export its goods. I read that they received a large order for 100,000 bricks from Dublin, to be used in the construction of municipal buildings in the city - some of them subsequently damaged by British troops 39 years later, presumably. I don't know if any of the soldiers who put down the uprising and executed the leaders had embarked from Pembroke. If so, they might also have seen Cardigan bricks in the newly-built Drill Hall there, or at the Naval Hospital in Pembroke Dock, if they were wounded in action

By the time of the 1920s depression, both the town and the brickworks were in decline. The sandbar across the Teifi river limits the size of ships that can safely enter the port. The improvement of inland transport made it cheaper to trade through bigger ports with bigger ships and distribute the goods overland. The final straw for the struggling brickworks was the 1921 miners' strike, when miners were resisting wage reductions imposed by private mine-owners after being released from wartime state control. The works struggled on, suffering several 'temporary closures' until one in 1925 became permanent. The works chimney was felled in 1927 and the site became a car park

The Mount Zion Baptist Chapel, however, appears to be thriving. It has had a marquee at Cardigan show for the last 5 years, winning "2016 Best Small Tradestand up to 20’ and 2019 Best Tradestand over 20’". Clearly they built their church on firmer financial foundations than their brick-supplier